It was a busy week at the General Assembly. The following are just a few examples of the controversial bills that passed at least one chamber by Thursday’s crossover deadline, meaning they are still alive to be passed by the other chamber later in this session. However, even a few bills that appear to have died could end up as amendments or proposed committee substitutes to previously passed bills (see the infamous “Motorcycle Vagina” bill in 2013), or as appropriations bills filed later.

A full and official list of all the bills that made crossover will be available on the General Assembly website soon.

We covered Session Law 2017-9 (HB 13) in last week’s edition. It slows the class size requirements in K-3 to a phase-in over two years. Skeptical senators, led by Chad Barefoot (R-Wake), added a detailed reporting plan with the stiff penalty for noncompliance being the withholding of state funds for a superintendent’s salary. The House concurred nearly unanimously with the amended Senate version of the bill, and Gov. Cooper quickly signed it into law Thursday, but had this to say: “While this legislation addresses immediate concerns, the failure of legislative Republicans to properly fund our schools has risked the jobs of educators and jeopardized our children’s future. It’s imperative that we quit kicking the can down the road.”

Returning to a bill we highlighted in our first Weekly Update: Could resegregation be the goal of HB 704 — Divide School Systems/Study Committee, a bill to study how to break up large school districts into smaller ones? Rep. Chris Malone (R-Wake) is a primary bill sponsor. While it made crossover, the study itself would have to be included in the omnibus Studies Bill that comes out every session, and it would have to be funded.

The House took action against so-called “sanctuary cities,” voting to allow citizens to sue their local government if they think the government isn't in compliance with state immigration law. Cities and counties would be charged $10,000 per day if a court finds them out of compliance. HB 113 — Private Action Local Compliance/Immigration Laws passed largely along party lines.

The Senate passed SJR 36, a resolution to apply to hold the second ever Constitutional Convention, like the one the U.S. had in 1787, in order to propose amendments to the U.S. Constitution. Primary bill sponsor Sen. Norm Sanderson (R-Carteret) says, “It’s the duty of the state to stand as the last line of defense from an overreaching federal government.” If this sounds vaguely familiar, the NC ordinance to secede from the Union reads, “[T]he State of North Carolina is in full possession and exercise of all those rights of sovereignty which belong and appertain to a free and independent State.” No Democrats voted Aye.